Encrypted email service linked to Edward Snowden shuts down

An encrypted email service believed to have been used by American fugitive
Edward Snowden was shut down abruptly on Thursday amid a legal fight that
appeared to involve US government attempts to win access to customer information.

Edward Snowden in Moscow Airport after being granted asylumPhoto: Life News, Russia

"I have been forced to make a difficult decision: to become complicit in crimes against the American people, or walk away from nearly 10 years of hard work by shutting down Lavabit," Lavabit LLC owner Ladar Levison wrote in a letter that was posted on the Texas-based company's website on Thursday.

Mr Levison said he has decided to "suspend operations" but was barred from discussing the events over the past six weeks that led to his decision.

That matches the period since Mr Snowden went public as the source of media reports detailing secret electronic spying operations by the US National Security Agency.

"This experience has taught me one very important lesson: without congressional action or a strong judicial precedent, I would strongly recommend against anyone trusting their private data to a company with physical ties to the United States," Mr Levison wrote.

Later on Thursday, an executive with a better-known provider of secure email said his company had also shut down thatservice. Jon Callas, co-founder of Silent Circle Inc, said on Twitter and in a blog post that Silent Circle had ended Silent Mail.

"We see the writing the wall, and we have decided that it is best for us to shut down Silent Mail now. We have not received subpoenas, warrants, security letters, or anything else by any government, and this is why we are acting now," Mr Callas wrote on a blog addressed to customers.

Mr Snowden has been charged with espionage but was granted asylum by Russia, prompting US President Barack Obama to scrap a planned meeting with Russian leader Vladimir Putin.

Lavabit's statement suggested a gag order was in place, and lawyers said that could accompany any one of a wide range of demands for information. The government could be seeking unencrypted versions of Mr Snowden's email correspondence, other information about him, the technical means to decrypt his future emails or those of other customers, or basic information on all of Lavabit's hundreds of thousands of users.